Over the years numerous powder and fiber dispensers have been described in the art. Some dispense powder by squeezing the soft walls of the container forcing powder or fiber to flow outwards (U.S. Pat. No. 4,307,823) or some function like a talcum powder dispenser (U.S. Pat. No. 3,238,819). Other dispensers use a rubber or plastic bulb that is connected to a container with a tube mounted on it. By squeezing the bulb or cap, air is compressed into the container that contains the powder or fibers, agitating them and causing them to dispense through a nozzle. (U.S. Pat. No. 4,007,858). Another dispenser (U.S. Pat. No. 6,168,781, U.S. Pat. No. 3,162,370) requires a separate compressed tank, one or two chambers of fiber or powder.
None of these dispensers however are compact enough for travel since they are subject to spilling and wastage of the internal material such as dry powder, hair fiber media contained therein. More specifically, they do not provide any means to prevent compression of the applicator's bulb that causes unintended discharge of the material during travel. Further, most of them have fixed nozzles for dispensing internal material, which protrude out of the applicator, occupying a lot of space thereby making it inconvenient for a user to carry it a purse or a travel bag. The protruding nozzle also does not let a seller display the applicators in a compact way on the shelf.
The inventor of the present patent application has previously described a hand held spraying-dispensing device for dispensing variety of powders and fibers in U.S. Pat. No. 7,841,494, which is incorporated herein by reference. While this is an improvement over the available designs, the applicator device that comprises of a pump dispenser with an elastic dome, does not have a protective cap to prevent the dome from getting dirty or prevent unintended discharge of the material during travel.
The present invention solves the problems discussed above. The present invention provides an applicator cap that covers and protects the dome of a pump dispenser in an applicator device. For example, the present invention provides an applicator cap that covers and protects the dome of the pump dispenser as described in U.S. Pat. No. 7,841,494. The applicator cap prevents unintended compression of the pump dispenser and discharge of internal materials during travel. The applicator cap provides a detachable nozzle that may be removed and secured safely when not in use. The applicator cap provides a means to cover and protect a spray outlet means when the nozzle is removed. These kind of protective caps with detachable nozzles have not been reported in the prior art applicators used towards cosmetic, personal care and other clinical purposes.